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Can you really afford to have your political enemies getting a hold of power and start to abuse the privileges you have created (in good faith)? "No regulation

by iwwr 16y ago

Can you really afford to have your political enemies getting a hold of power and start to abuse the privileges you have created (in good faith)? "No regulations, no censorship!" is a hard and fast rule that can be followed easily. The correct political solution is for the FCC to open up larger swaths of spectrum for unlicensed use (call it WiFi on steroids). That way, if a particular ISP decides to screw their customers, there would always be a baseline wireless mesh internet that people could use.

anigbrowl 16y ago
The correct political solution is for the FCC to open up larger swaths of spectrum for unlicensed use (call it WiFi on steroids). You mean like this? http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1130/DOC-303095A1.pdf http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1130...
- eli 16y ago
  Pretty sure all that spectrum is licensed and auctioned off... not opened to unlicensed use.
  - anigbrowl 16y ago
    I'm pretty sure you didn't bother to check, then: 1. INTRODUCTION 1. By this action, we are finalizing rules to make the unused spectrum in the TV bands available for unlicensed broadband wireless devices. http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1025/FCC-10-174A1.pdf http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1025... I realize it's a large and complicated regulatory situation, but it has been in the news quite a lot this year. I don't see why you've assumed the worst without looking into the factual background at all.
    - eli 16y ago
      I think we're perhaps talking about two different things. There's a big difference between the massive chunk of valuable 700Mhz spectrum that the FCC auctioned off in 2008 (with much fanfare), and the recent decision to formally allow unlicensed use of the "white spaces" between existing licensed frequencies.
quanticle 16y ago
Unfortunately, it is not a rule that can be applied to every economic situation. In particular, utilities, such as electricity, water, and telecoms form natural monopolies. One a set of infrastructure is built, the company controlling said infrastructure can put up massive barriers to entry, as they control the physical devices that provide the good or service to the consumers. Even your example of unregulated spectrum would require a significant investment in repeaters and antennae. Once a company or consortium built out that infrastructure, what prevents them from denying that infrastructure to competitors, just as traditional ISPs are doing today?
- chopsueyar 16y ago
  Do it like the TVA... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee_valley_authority http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee_valley_authority
- ataggart 16y ago
  >telecoms form natural monopolies. Perhaps, though the it's of little relevance given all the government-granted monopolies. It would be nice to see "net neutrality" legislation advocates first look at what extant legislation interferes with competitive forces before proposing further legislation.

by iwwr 16y ago

anigbrowl 16y ago

The correct political solution is for the FCC to open up larger swaths of spectrum for unlicensed use (call it WiFi on steroids). You mean like this? http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1130/DOC-303095A1.pdf http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1130...

eli 16y ago
Pretty sure all that spectrum is licensed and auctioned off... not opened to unlicensed use.
- anigbrowl 16y ago
  I'm pretty sure you didn't bother to check, then: 1. INTRODUCTION 1. By this action, we are finalizing rules to make the unused spectrum in the TV bands available for unlicensed broadband wireless devices. http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1025/FCC-10-174A1.pdf http://www.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2010/db1025... I realize it's a large and complicated regulatory situation, but it has been in the news quite a lot this year. I don't see why you've assumed the worst without looking into the factual background at all.
  - eli 16y ago
    I think we're perhaps talking about two different things. There's a big difference between the massive chunk of valuable 700Mhz spectrum that the FCC auctioned off in 2008 (with much fanfare), and the recent decision to formally allow unlicensed use of the "white spaces" between existing licensed frequencies.

quanticle 16y ago

Unfortunately, it is not a rule that can be applied to every economic situation. In particular, utilities, such as electricity, water, and telecoms form natural monopolies. One a set of infrastructure is built, the company controlling said infrastructure can put up massive barriers to entry, as they control the physical devices that provide the good or service to the consumers. Even your example of unregulated spectrum would require a significant investment in repeaters and antennae. Once a company or consortium built out that infrastructure, what prevents them from denying that infrastructure to competitors, just as traditional ISPs are doing today?

chopsueyar 16y ago
Do it like the TVA... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee_valley_authority http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee_valley_authority
ataggart 16y ago
>telecoms form natural monopolies. Perhaps, though the it's of little relevance given all the government-granted monopolies. It would be nice to see "net neutrality" legislation advocates first look at what extant legislation interferes with competitive forces before proposing further legislation.